It's hard to put into words how dramatically schedules shift here, once school wraps up. And this summer has felt a bit different as we didn't have any guests after the Texas team departed.
Nevertheless we've stayed busy. Nathan is on a few boards for local organizations that have required some extra attention this summer. We've also had some travel, though not altogether as a family. Then there is the matter of our residency permits which expire in August. It's been so nice to have big chunks of time to devote to the document chase our renewals have required!
The following photos are some highlights that have transpired...
This spring a neighboring farm had an explosion of baby goats -- we finally got around to seeing them this summer. I regret that we never made it over to see them when they were newborns. :-(
This boy still loves cucumbers as much as ever! And they grow like crazy here!
This is Ellie, sleeping in the Vienna Airport during a five hour layover on our return to Albania from WGM meetings that I (Cydil) attended. At some point you might be so tired you use used airline blankets left by someone else because 'they looked like clean people.' Please, no comments on how unclean and unsafe this probably was. To be honest, "bed bugs" or the like never even crossed my mind at the time...
Got a great welcome home by the boys....
Our old neighborhood in Tirana... someone knew it was America's birthday and hung the stars and stripes! :-) It's so refreshing to find pro-American support here and there.
Bonus about going to America in late June: all sorts of July 4 swag to bring back to Albania!
We had dear friends over for a good ol' American cookout on July 4th followed by water games and sparklers!
This summer Nathan has given the lesson at church several times... as we're walking through the book of Acts, it's been conducive to teaching through the 'storying' method and helpful for noticing new details in these stories.
This summer as seen a LOT of nerf gun battles in our home! I'm perpetually picking up little blue and orange bullets from under and behind furniture. Below, Reni is pictured with one of his two besties from the village, Flavio. The Star Wars masks are not necessarily for protection, but probably a really good idea!
One of the best aspects of summer... the sun moves north and provides us with some fantastic sunsets! (In the winter it sets behind a mountain and we miss it completely).
We have lost track of the number of days we have spent tracking down documents, searching for government offices, made copies and had our photos taken, all in the name of renewing our residency permit. The last time we did this was five years ago and our grasp of the Albanian language has made huge strides since then, allowing us to feel much more independent in the process. Yet, this application is different than last time and government offices have moved. It's been a roller coaster of emotions thinking we've done something wrong or missed a deadline or had to find another way to meet a necessary criteria. The photo below was taken while grabbing lunch at a favorite Asian fast food restaurant in Tirana. It was a reward for the kids who tromped all over Tirana with us to go to just 'one more office' and a place to cool our heels while Nathan stood in line next door. Reni is demonstrating his 'kung fu chops' (in honor of the name of the restaurant, as well as how we felt we were tackling our list!).
As the temperatures rose, interest in really active games at the center has declined, finding the boys preferring play in the shade. That's fine with Reni who still loves a good game of chess!
Our regular programs have continued through July. I just had to share this pic of an adorable boy holding an adorable craft. Any guesses on the story? (That's a camel puppet)
Every weekend Tiffany spends the night out in the village with us. After a long day of kids clubs and extra planning for our summer party she was all set to return to Tirana when she tossed her car keys on the front seat with her purse to go open the vehicle gate. As soon as she closed the door to pass by the car, the electrical system triggered the door locks and locked her out for more than two hours!
Ellie has been reading up a storm, and still sits in her odd positions, just like she's done since she was little! We bought this swing chair for her birthday to help provide her some of the sensory input she still seeks. Many a day will find her out there swinging with a book or playing her ukulele.
On July 18 Nathan and I celebrated 20 years of marriage! We found some cheap tickets last winter on a discount airline to a lesser-known city in a neighboring country and after securing childcare for the kids, took our first multi-night trip away from them in more than six years! Turns out discount airlines are "discount" for a reason, but we made it home, albeit a day later than originally planned!
One of the highlights (in addition to just having time away with my favorite travel buddy) was taking a cooking class together!
As we considered some different activities to do for Reni's birthday, we had to measure him to see if he met a minimum height requirement for a local gym. We're crossing our fingers to see if he will be allowed to participate! The tape measure is locked at 110cm, the minimum requirement. He's obviously much shorter... it makes it challenging for him to join in on some favorite activities with his peers!
Albanian hair cuts are SHARP. Here's Reni gettin' styled after his last trim.
Our tradition is to eat at a "Western" themed restaurant in Tirana -- one of the only places in the country to find a pulled-pork sandwich.
And because you can't flush the toilet paper in Albania, this sign posted in the restaurant bathroom was especially amusing... It translates roughly, "Whoever throws tp in the toilet is a villager, not a cowboy." :-)
So there.
(I wonder if they knew their customers that day were visiting from the village, ha ha).
Coming up.... Reni turns 10
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